This invention generally relates to a spread spectrum communication system and, more particularly, to narrowband interference mitigation for a spread spectrum communication system using electronic processing of low complexity.
Industrial spread spectrum communications have benefited greatly from the rules of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Part 15 relating to unlicensed spread spectrum communications. The advent and universal acceptance of Industrial, Scientific, and Medical (ISM) communications has benefited many organizations faced with a requirement to transport data over short distances. Worldwide response has been extremely positive for the ISM communications of data over short distances. For example, the ISM band from 2400–2483.5 MHz is almost universally available.
Spread spectrum communications are often asymmetric in cost and complexity. For example, spread spectrum signals can be generated using circuitry of relatively low complexity. However, detection and successful demodulation of such signals is typically a complex and expensive task. The cost/complexity asymmetry is especially true in an interference environment. Since the communications are unlicensed and quite often used to support host missions on mobile platforms, it is prudent to plan for the contingency that a relatively strong narrowband interfering signal (“interferer”) must be removed or excised in order to gain a sufficient signal-to-interferer-plus-noise ratio for the requisite data transportation quality. Therefore, a desire exists for systems that can be used to enable short-range spread spectrum communications using circuits and signal processing techniques of low complexity.